47's Protege
by V-Vendetta
Summary: What if the Agency's best Agent, 47, had just completed a hit in Konoha, and had found Naruto being beaten by a mob? What if 47 then took Naruto away, intent on training him to be an assassin, just like him? Rated M for language, lemons, character death, etc.)
1. 47's Protege

So, some of you may or may have not noticed that I've taken down a few of my stories from my profile. The reason for this is simple, I have lost motivation for writing those particular stories that I've taken down, and I'm not necessarily sure on when I would be updating them. So, to cut my losses, I simply deleted them and am moving onto other story ideas, such as this one. Hopefully you all can try to understand why I did this, and will enjoy this new story.

-V

* * *

Where he was born, he was treated as a demon, an outcast and plague among the village. He housed the Nine Tailed Fox within him, and for that reason, 3/4 of the village hated a mere child. The boy with sun-kissed blonde hair, cerulean blue eyes and three identical whisker marks on each cheek. His name was Naruto Uzumaki, but he had gotten used to being called "demon," "freak," "loser," and so on. At the tender age of five, he didn't really have any friends, and he was kicked out of the orphanage, forced to fend for himself on the street. This is where we find him today, scavenging for food.

"C'mon, c'mon, there's gotta be somethin'." The child complained somewhat, digging further into the trash. "Yes!" He whispered, pulling out half eaten apple. He knew he was probably going to throw it up later, but he didn't exactly have a choice. He began to eat the apple, ignoring how soft the fruit was, signifying it was spoiled. He swallowed and continued to eat, before moving on toward the next alleyway. On his way, he bumped into a man who was dressed in a business suit, with a white button up shirt, a blood red tie, and black gloves. One thing that Naruto noted about the man, was that he was bald. "Oh, I'm sorry, mister." Naruto spoke up at him before quickly scurrying off.

The man in question merely watched with observant blue eyes before continuing on his way. He calmly strolled down the streets of Konoha, heading toward his target's house, on the civilian part of town. He knew that many a shinobi were out and about the village, but the man was no fool. He had studied chakra, and even picked up a few jutsu's along the way, only adding to his deadly skill set. Nearing the target's house, he took a quick look around his surroundings, mentally figuring out what he was going to do next. Nodding to himself, he silently approached the fence of the target and vaulted over, landing on the grass before he crouched. Sneaking over quickly, he climbed up the side and entered the bathroom window, mentally 'tsking' to himself.

"They should really learn to lock their windows and doors." He muttered, before reaching into his jacket and pulling out his fiber wire. Clutching it into his hand, he opened the bathroom door as quietly as he could and made his way downstairs to the living room. The target, a slightly heavier man who refused to pay back his debts to the man who employed the assassin, was sitting in his chair, watching TV. The calm assassin merely extended his fiber wire, pulling it taut and walking over. The target had no idea he was being hovered over, as he let out a laugh at the show. The bald killer merely watched and waited, and whenever a loud fight scene flashed on the screen, he struck. He wrapped the fiber wire around the target's neck, pulling and refused to give in as the target began to struggle, grasping at his neck. Within minutes, the target grew slack before the killer withdrew his weapon, stowing it away and heading out the front door.

He looked around to ensure no one was watching him leave the premises, but rose an eyebrow as he saw several people head toward the East side of town, from where he came from. He probably should just leave and not worry about it, but a small child's scream made him pause mid-step down the porch. He clenched his jaw and exhaled slightly before heading in the direction that the people were going toward. He picked up the pace somewhat, taking note of the small crowd that had formed in a nearby alleyway. He strolled forward and pushed his way through the crowd, only to see two men kicking on the small child from before. The one that had bumped into him. The bald man closed his eyes momentarily before stepping forward and pulling the two away from the child. The two child abusers fell into the crowd before they were helped back up. "What's the big idea, baldy? You're ruining our fun." One slurred out.

"Yeah, we gotta teach that- _hic -_ demon a lesson." The other burped in reply, each sizing him up. However, it must have been something in the bald one's eyes that suddenly intimidated the two, for they frowned and began to shuffle away. However, one brave soul in the back, a freshly graduated Chunin of the Hidden Leaf rushed forward, kunai in hand.

"If you won't get out of our way, we'll have to kill you, too!" He cried out, the small crowd cheering behind him.

The male merely raised an eyebrow and struck out, blocking the kunai with his own knife, twisting his arm around so that the kunai was forced downward, and with his momentum, the killer lashed out with a straight right cross, followed by a kick to the teenager's stomach. The Chunin stumbled somewhat before regaining his footing, only for the man dressed in the business suit to slam the handle of his knife into his temple, sending the boy into unconsciousness. "So," the man spoke calmly, "does anyone else want a turn?" The crowd quickly dispersed, before the man turned his head back somewhat, gazing at the boy, "Are you okay?"

"I'll be okay, mister. I always am." The boy said with a bloody grin, before wincing in pain.

"Yes, well, let's get you to the hospital." The man extended his hand.

"No, no. They don't treat freaks like me at that place." The boy insisted, shaking his head, "Don't worry, I'll be okay in a few days."

"Let me rephrase that sentence," The man coughed slightly, "You're coming to the hospital to get checked out, and if anyone refuses to treat you, then they have me to deal with. Understand?" The boy nodded, as the man patiently held out his hand. "Very good, now let's go." The boy grasped the man's gloved hand hesitantly, before the two started to head into the direction of the hospital.

Arriving within ten minutes, the man entered with the small, bloody and bruised child and called out, "Get me a doctor, now."

The secretary behind the desk merely looked at the boy in question and wrinkled her nose in disgust, "I'm sorry sir, but all our doctors are busy right..." She was cut off as the man was suddenly in her face, his eyebrows furrowed and blue eyes narrowed. His expression was blank, but his eyes promised bad intentions.

"I said, get me a doctor. _Now_." The man repeated.

"R-right away." The secretary stuttered, before paging a doctor to the front.

"What seems to be the problem, Denise?" The doctor questioned after walking up to the them.

"The...the _boy_ needs help, Dr. Richard." The secretary said, spitting out the word boy as if it were poison.

Dr. Richard was about to tell the kid to buzz off, but the man that was with the boy sent off mental alarms within his head. "Well, let's get you checked out, okay, buddy?" He said with forced kindness, all the while the bald man was watching with a critical eye. "If you'll just follow me." The man stood as well, "Oh, sir, you don't have to bother yourself, we can patch him up and he'll be fine in the morning."

"Be that as it may, Dr. Richard, I wish to accompany the boy. Just to ensure he's in the right hands." The man answered calmly, raising an eyebrow, "Unless you're denying me that right?"

Dr. Richard swallowed and shook his head, "Not at all, sir. Not at all." He turned on his heel and walked to a nearby room, as he picked up young Naruto and sat him on the table, "Let's see...busted lip, bruised cheeks, and bruised ribs. What on Earth happened?"

"Let's just say that a crowd of people decided to gang up on the boy, and that I intervened." The man answered, not missing the grimace on the doctor's face. The villagers all hated the boy, but why? "Dr. Richard, I suggest you go ahead and call the boy's guardian, if he has any."

"He doesn't, unfortunately." A voice answered from the doorway. The man looked over to lock eyes with the Hokage, the village leader, whom was escorted by an ANBU with a dog mask, and grey gravity defying hair. The wizened elder strolled forward, donned in his Hokage robes. He took off his hat and sat it atop of Naruto's head, the boy wrapping his arms around the older man. "I'm sorry that I wasn't able to get any ANBU there in time, Naruto. Luckily this man was able to safe you." Turning to the assassin, the Hokage nodded his head, "Thank you, Mr..?"

"47." The man replied easily, "My name is 47."

"Well, thank you, 47." The Hokage repeated himself, before turning to Dr. Richard, "If you would give us some privacy, doctor?"

"But of course, Lord Hokage." Dr. Richard practically sprinted out of the room, wanting to so desperately be away from the bald man.

"Inu, why don't you go take Naruto out for some ramen, while I talk to 47?" The Hokage suggested, although the three men in the room knew that it was an order.

"What an excellent idea, Lord Hokage. C'mon, Naruto, I'm sure you're starving." Inu said with a somewhat lazy tone, although 47 could detect that the ANBU cared for the boy.

"Sure am, Inu! Better than the paste they give here." The boy giggled, as he was put on Inu's back, the two leaving via the nearby window, jumping across the rooftops.

"So, 47, why are you in our village?" The Hokage turned serious, eyeing the assassin.

"If you must know, Lord Hokage, I had a particular target on the civilian part of town. I bumped into Naruto earlier, and as I was leaving from the completed job, I heard him scream. I went to investigate, and then came upon a small crowd. Two men were beating the boy, and I intervened. I also knocked out one of your shinobi, whom I thought were supposed to be protecting everyone in the village, not attacking a defenseless boy."

"Oh, I know what you were doing, 47. I saw it all through my crystal ball. While I should have you arrested, I'm letting you go due to your...target being one of the more unsavory villagers, and due to the fact that you saved Naruto." The Hokage responded, before he chewed on his bottom lip, "You obviously have extensive hand-to-hand combat, stealth capabilities and are well versed in weapons."

"That's right. Where I was born, we were trained and raised to be professional killers. We are to block out emotions such as fear, love, anger, and so on. We are known as agents. As you know, I'm Agent 47." 47 explained, as he shifted somewhat in his seat. "Tell me, why do the villagers hate Naruto?"

The Hokage frowned, "I wouldn't necessarily say they hate him..." However, Agent 47 interrupted.

"With all due respect, Lord Hokage, that's bullshit, and we both know it. How often is Naruto attacked? Glared at? The boy is starving and on the streets, for God's sake!" 47 merely drummed one gloved hand against the arm of the chair, watching the village leader.

"They hate him for something that's out of his control. They hate him for something that happened five years ago." The Hokage said, chewing on his lip again. He was hesitant to tell him, 47 observed. But why? He wracked his brain, trying to figure out what happened five years ago. ' _The only thing of real significance was the Kyuubi attack on the village... Oh.'_ 47 thought to himself before speaking his mind.

"It was the Kyuubi attack, wasn't it?" Seeing the Hokage's eyes widen, only confirmed 47's thought, and the assassin continued forward, "From what I heard around the grapevine, is that you had given up the title of Hokage to Minato Namikaze, the renowned 'Yellow Flash', about a year before the Kyuubi attack. Tell me, why isn't he here now?"

The Hokage sighed and performed a privacy jutsu around the hospital room, "You understand that if you breathe a word of this to anyone while within the village walls, you will be executed?"

 _'They can try.'_ 47 thought to himself, before nodding, "Understood."

"As you have deduced, the Kyuubi, or Nine Tailed Fox did attack our village five years ago. And you are again, correct in the fact that I had given up the Hokage title to Minato a year prior to said attack. Whenever the Kyuubi attacked, we had lost a good portion of our forces, and Minato had no choice but to try to fight the beast. He succeeded in getting it away from the village, but there isn't a known way to defeat the tailed beast, except for sealing it into a human."

"Naruto." 47 surmised, the drumming of his fingers stopping. "So, the Fourth Hokage sealed the Nine Tailed Fox into his own child, did he?"

"Who said that Minato was Naruto's father?" The Hokage questioned sharply, boring his eyes into 47's.

"Would you really ask someone to sacrifice their child to house a tailed beast? It's illogical to think that the Fourth would do such a thing, and the only thing I can think of is that Naruto is his son." The Hokage was silent for a few minutes, while 47 smirked a bit, "And I am correct, aren't I?"

The Third let out a deep breath, sagging and looking older than ever, "Yes, it's true. I'm not sure how you could figure out any of this so quickly, but you mustn't breathe a word of this to anyone."

"I won't, Lord Hokage. And to answer your question as to how I figured it out so quickly, I was created superior to normal humans, to be the perfect killing machine. I'm faster, stronger, and more intelligent than the normal human being." 47 explained.

"Wait, created?" The Third questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"That's right," 47 nodded, "I was created in a lab of sorts, complete with test tubes and other clones. I, however, am considered one of the better agents around." Normally he wouldn't be telling anyone this, but if the Hokage could tell him a secret, then 47 would show the same courtesy.

"I...see. Well, now what do you intend to do, 47?" The Hokage inquired.

"I intend to go back to doing what I do best." 47 answered, as he stood up, "But, I'll be bringing Naruto along with me."

"What? You think you're going to just take him out of the village?" The Hokage scoffed, "You're a trained killer, and you live a dangerous life. Why should I let Naruto go with you?"

"Would you really want Naruto to keep growing up on the streets, unable to defend himself? What if one day he ends up with his neck broken? I doubt anyone would really miss him, here. Besides, I can give him the skill set necessary to defend himself, and perhaps give the villagers years to adjust to life without Naruto, so whenever he returns, he can adapt to life here without any trouble. If anyone asks, you can simply say that Naruto ran away." 47 explained, watching the Hokage's reaction.

For a moment, the Hokage said nothing, and after a pregnant pause, he sighed, "You better be right about this, 47. I'm trusting you, even though I hardly know you."

"And I hardly know you, yet you trusted me with a highly classified village secret." 47 countered, "Don't worry, I'll protect Naruto until he's ready to come back to the village. Expect him back within five to ten years." He stood up and started to leave, "Oh, and Lord Hokage, before I leave, I have a question."

"What's that?" The Third questioned, curiosity in his voice.

"Why don't you all have laptops, cellphones or automobiles? The village could handle it, I imagine."

"To be honest, we never really had time for technological advances. Minato was thinking the same thing you were, but then the Kyuubi attack happened, and we've been recovering ever since. Perhaps, whenever you come back, things will be different." The Third said wistfully, before watching as 47 nodded and exited the hospital room. The assassin left the hospital, heading toward the only known ramen shop in town. Once there, he found Naruto and Inu the ANBU talking and laughing, while Naruto was inhaling an insane amount of the food.

"Naruto." 47 spoke, interrupting their conversation. Once he had the boy's attention, he spoke again, "Let's get going, shall we?"

"Going where?" Naruto questioned, his cerulean blue eyes gleaming with curiosity.

"Away from the Leaf Village, and on to better things." 47 answered.

"Now wait just a minute, what makes you think that Naruto is going to go willingly? Or that I'll let you?" The ANBU questioned, glaring at 47.

"You don't have a choice, Inu." 47 retorted, "The Third has allowed me to do so. And Naruto, if you don't wish to leave, I won't force you. However, I could give you the means to defend yourself, and you could get away from all the constant glares, attacks and whispers that the village throws at you every day. You're strong for your age, but everything has their breaking point. Think of it like a vacation...we'll come back."

"Do you promise?" Naruto questioned.

"I promise, we'll come back to the village." 47 answered honestly, nodding his head again. He began to walk away, heading toward the village exits.

Naruto looked at Inu, before hugging him tightly around the waist, "Don't worry, Inu, this man will protect me, and I'll come back! I promise!" With that, the small boy began to run off, eventually catching up with 47 while Inu watched.

"I hope you're right, Naruto. I truly do." The ANBU let out a small sigh, suddenly not wanting to finish his ramen.

47 and Naruto left the village, under the moonlight, the giant planet and the stars to guide their way to the next small town or village that they came across. Soon, Naruto's training would begin in earnest, despite him being five. 47 would mold him to be better, stronger, faster, more intelligent. Sure, Naruto wouldn't be a clone of 47, but he would be 47's little protege, and that's gotta count for something, right?

* * *

Well, Chapter 1 is complete! Hopefully you all like! R&R, everyone! :D

-V


	2. Gaara

Last time on _**47's Protege**_ :

 _47 and Naruto left the village, under the moonlight, the giant planet and the stars to guide their way to the next small town or village that they came across. Soon, Naruto's training would begin in earnest, despite him being five. 47 would mold him to be better, stronger, faster, more intelligent. Sure, Naruto wouldn't be a clone of 47, but he would be 47's little protege, and that's gotta count for something, right?_

 _Thoughts_ will be italicized

 **Demon thought and speak** will be bold.

I own nothing of Naruto, nor of HITMAN.

-V

* * *

The two had been traveling for three days, only stopping to rest and eat at a small village they came across. 47 decided they had traveled a sufficient amount away from the Leaf Village, and the two were head toward an all civilian city, no shinobi around. The city was nicknamed "Sin City" simply because the civilian police had a difficult time maintaining the peace. Checking into a small hotel, 47 turned to Naruto, "Alright, we're going to begin your training."

"What do you want me to do?" The 5 year old questioned, eyes gleaming with excitement.

"I want you to do your best to evade capture by me. You are going to get a five minute head start, and then I'm going to hunt you down. If you for some reason manage to evade capture, then we will move onto a different setting and try your stealth capabilities again." 47 then proceeded to pull out his cell phone, going to the stopwatch, and setting the timer. "Ready?" Seeing Naruto nod, he pressed the stopwatch, "Go!" Naruto bolted from the hotel entrance, and heading out into the streets. 47 waited until the five minutes were up, true to his word before he too, strolled out of the hotel and searched for Naruto.

The young boy in question was currently moving in and out of crowds of people, before turning to a nearby alleyway. He didn't really see anything that would help him...wait, wait! There was a dumpster, a trashcan, and a drain that he could climb up on. Not knowing how far 47 was behind him, or how close, Naruto weighed his options.

Meanwhile, 47 was strolling calmly through the streets, using his senses to find the boy. "Did you see that kid? Running in such a hurry, almost knocked over my beer!" An elderly man grumbled.

"Little runt was quick, though." His friend replied, chuckling quietly.

47 narrowed his eyes somewhat before walking forward, noting the small footprints in the dirt. He smirked slightly as he was led into the small alleyway, taking note of the dumpster, trashcan and the drainpipe. The most logical thing that Naruto would have done is probably go into the dumpster or trashcan, 47 assumed. He opened the lid of both and didn't find the boy anywhere. He blinked somewhat in surprise before proceeding to climb the drainpipe and once he was on the roof, he surveyed the area. Nothing alerted him of Naruto's presence, so where would he be? He tapped one gloved finger against his pant leg before turning around and looking down. He rubbed the bridge of his nose in slight irritation as he saw a flash of blonde hair dash around the corner. "That's interesting, Naruto. How did you slip past me?" He wondered, as he climbed back down the drainpipe.

Naruto panted, his heart beating in his chest. He wondered how 47 didn't see him, as he was _behind_ the dumpster, but his hair was bright enough to stick out anywhere! He wasn't one to count his eggs before they hatched, however. He continued to run back toward the hotel, only for someone to grab him by the scruff of his shirt, hoisting him up into the air. The boy started to fight momentarily, only to see 47 staring at him. "So..." he breathed out, "how'd I do?"

"Well, if I didn't see you dash back around the corner in such a hurry, I would say you passed. I caught you, but that doesn't mean you didn't do well. We'll continue your training later this evening, under the cover of dark. Understand?" 47 questioned. Naruto nodded, and 47 set him down before he began to walk forward, "Come along, Naruto. We have to do a little bit of shopping to get you out of those rags."

 _A month later_

"Again, Naruto. Do it again." 47 instructed, as he bit into an apple, leaning against a nearby tree. He watched with his ice blue eyes as Naruto threw a jab, followed by a straight right cross and then a knee. His form was sloppy, but granted, he was but a mere child, and 47 had only been training him for a month. However, the boy was improving rapidly, and it made 47 slightly proud. It was like watching himself as a child, minus all the torturing and the doctors. He grimaced slightly, knowing that there would be other Agents after his head, and that included little Naruto. He had to prepare the boy, and hopefully he wouldn't run out of time before it happened.

Agent 47 didn't know about his chakra reserves, but he had picked up a useful jutsu from a shinobi that was from the Hidden Mist village, whose name was Zabuza. It was called the _'Shadow Clone Jutsu_ ' and if you had the chakra, you could create a solid clone that could be used for a variety of things, whether it be intel, sparring, or the simple grocery trip. He put his index and middle finger of both hands into the shape of a T and quietly called out, "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" while pumping chakra into it. A 'puff' appeared next to him, and out of the smoke stood an exact replica of himself. "If you are truly a clone of me, then go help Naruto spar." The original instructed.

The clone walked forward and began to instruct Naruto on his form, and the clone threw punches and kicks, forcing Naruto to either counter, grab and block, or to dodge. If he didn't, he ended up getting hit, the boy quickly found out. Agent 47 watched the two spar, and by the end of the night, he took note that Naruto's form was better than it was when they had began their training that morning. The boy was a _quick_ learner indeed. That is something that 47 could use that to his advantage.

 _Five months later_

47 sat cross-legged in a clearing in the middle of the forest, his eyes closed as he breathed in and out. Hearing something flying through the air, 47 craned his head to the left, dodging the sharp edge of a kunai. Rolling backward, he dodged three more before pulling out his own knife and parrying with Naruto's kunai. The boy grit his teeth in determination as he quit struggling, aiming for a liver shot, which was blocked. Naruto's other fist struck toward 47's sternum, only for the assassin to step back slightly, a few inches away. Naruto moved in toward 47's defenses, aiming with an inner right leg kick, trying to sweep the elder off balance, only for 47 to shift his right knee toward Naruto slightly, effectively blocking the would-be sweep.

"Damn it!" Naruto cursed only to back away and counter as quickly as he could against 47's assault. With every punch, grab and kick that 47 threw, Naruto continued to back up, until his back came up against the hard surface of a tree. "Uh oh." The boy gasped, only to duck and roll away from 47's fist, the Agent tearing off some tree bark with his strength. Getting back on the balls of his feet, Naruto sprung forward and threw a feint, before throwing a spinning left kick, only for 47 to jump over it.

"That's enough, Naruto. You did well, on today's lesson. I'm proud of you, and how far you've come...However, you have more training to do. There's a lot we can improve on, such as your patience. It's gotten better, but you're still jumping the gun. For instance, if you would have waited another minute, I would have gotten up and started to look for you, further increasing your chance to get the drop on me." 47 explained, only for Naruto to nod.

"I understand, 47." Naruto said seriously, only to grow somewhat excited as 47's cell began to ring. "Oh, oh, is it another hit? Is it?"

47 glared at him as Naruto immediately shut up, and pulled out his cell. "Hello, Diana. What is it?"

"47, it appears that you have been assigned to take out one Yashamaru in the Hidden Village of the Sand." His Handler spoke from the other end of the line, "Get to a resting place and I'll send you the information on your laptop."

The killer gazed at Naruto for a moment before putting away his cellphone, "You ready to move?"

"Yes, 47, I'm ready!" The little boy said in a somewhat energetic tone. 47 hid a smirk, as it seemed that Naruto still had a hard time containing his excitement. The man frowned somewhat, hiding his face, as he didn't exactly know what it was like to be energetic. As children, the trainees of the Agency were taught to suppress any and all emotion. In a way, he envied Naruto.

"Very well, Naruto. Let's go." With that, assassin and protege left the forest and headed toward the Village Hidden in the Sand, toward 47's target.

After traveling for about a week, they had arrived, immediately being stopped by the guards at the gate, "Stop for a moment, baldy. Who are you and the runt?" The younger one asked, his partner sizing them up.

47 merely regarded them with cool eyes before producing two passports and handing them to the guard on duty. "I assume everything is in order?" 47 questioned.

"Yes sir, everything seems to be in order." The guard reported back, handing the passports to the man. "My apologizes for insulting you."

"Oh, that's quite alright." 47 replied, the man and boy entering the Hidden Sand Village for the first time. Luckily Naruto had stopped complaining about the heat a few days ago, so there was that saving grace. "Naruto, I need you to be on the look-out for someone that may be treated like you were in the Leaf village."

"What do you mean, 47?" Naruto feigned ignorance.

"You know exactly what I mean, Naruto." 47 said sternly, glancing back at him.

"Understood." Naruto said, seriousness on his little face as he blinked up at him, "Permission to leave and search for said boy?"

"Granted." 47 watched as the boy scampered off, before he walked off in the opposite direction, searching for his intended target. The man strolled through-out the village, keeping his eyes and ears open, all the while ignoring the various looks he was receiving. He had intelligence from Diana that there was a boy just like Naruto located in the village, named Gaara, son of the Fourth Kazekage. However, Gaara had the interesting ability to manipulate sand, and while 47 wasn't exactly taking in every orphan off of the street, he figured he could extend a hand and help the boy hone his abilities.

Naruto traversed through the city, trying to use the skills that Agent 47 had taught him leading up to now. He figured this was a test, and he couldn't fail it! He walked around, observing the city until he took note of a red ball rolling to a stop his way. He nudged it with his foot and looked up to see a boy with dark red hair and black rings around his eyes. The boy was sniffling and wiping at his eyes quickly, crouched into himself. Naruto rolled the ball back to the crying boy, who immediately looked up in shock. "Did you lose that?" The blonde questioned.

"N-no. Three other kids were playing and they kicked it my way. H-however, when I went to give it to them, they ran off...because they think I'm a freak!" he spoke the last part bitterly, and Naruto's eyes widened slightly. That's how he was treated at the Hidden Leaf!

"Well, you don't look like a freak to me. You look like a human, just like the rest of us." Naruto spoke, gauging the boy's reaction. He walked over to the redhead, smiling tenatively, "My name is Naruto Uzumaki. And you are?"

"Gaara of the Sand." The other boy said quietly.

"Well, nice to meet you Gaara. And hey, if those boys don't wanna take their ball back, why don't we play with it?" Naruto suggested.

"I...you would do that?" Gaara gasped, his eyes widening. Someone was talking to him? Not running away? And offering to play with him?

"Sure! Who knows, maybe we could be friends." Naruto grinned, as he motioned to Gaara. "C'mon, lead the way to a place where we can play!"

Gaara nodded, still somewhat suspicious of Naruto's intentions, but it appeared that the blonde meant well. He began to walk further toward the middle of the village, with Naruto following at his side. The two arrived at the park and Naruto walked away, only a short distance. "Get ready to kick the ball back, Gaara!" The boy called, Gaara nodding in return. Naruto dropped the ball and kicked it forward, with Gaara returning the ball back to its sender.

The game continued back and forth until a rock flew through the air and toward Gaara. The redheaded boy wasn't paying any attention, but Naruto was, the young boy quickly rearing his foot back and kicking the ball, watching as it collided with the rock. "Naruto?" Gaara questioned, seeing that Naruto was no longer smiling or laughing, but scowling, his blue eyes observing the area.

"Hey! Why are you defending the freak?!" A boy called out, while Gaara turned his head to view three local bullies. He took a step back instinctively, only for Naruto to approach him, standing next to him. "You going to answer me, blondie?"

"Yeah, I'll answer you." Naruto responded, "I'm playing with my new friend, Gaara!"

"Friend? He doesn't have any friends! He's a freak, nothing but a monster!" The lead bully retorted, "But if you want to play with the monster, then you'll have to pay! Let's get him." The three began to run forward, intent on causing Naruto bodily harm.

"N-Naruto, get out of here! They only want me." Gaara spoke to his newfound friend, only for the blonde to stroll forward. "Naruto?" He blinked, staring at the back of his head.

Naruto continued to walk forward with an eerie calmness in his step. Approaching the first boy, he quickly intertwined their legs together and dropped the older boy to the ground before slamming his foot into the side of his head. Reacting quickly, he caught the punch of the second before throwing him over his shoulder, albeit with some difficulty, before backing up and countering the sloppy punch thrown by the third, and slamming his own into the boy's nose. This was all done within a matter of minutes, all the while Gaara stood and watched, mouth agape. Naruto turned his head to stare at Gaara, before offering a thin smile, "So, wanna continue playing?"

Gaara nodded slowly, while the two boys that were still conscious picked up the one that wasn't, and scurried away as fast as their legs could take them. "H-how did you do that? And why?"

"A bit of training I've been doing, and I did it because no one picks on my friends." Naruto replied while he stood opposite of Gaara, "Now c'mon, kick the ball!"

 _ **XxXx 47's Protege XxXx**_

47 watched the interaction from afar before turning and entering the office of Yashamura, who was quickly bleeding out and had only a few minutes to live. "So, you were assigned to try to assassinate Gaara tonight, hm?" The professional killer spoke with curiousness in his voice before he turned his cold blue eyes toward the dying man. "Do you wish to tell me why?"

"It's because...it's because he killed my sister, his mother, and because he houses the One Tailed demon within him, Shukaku. The little monster can manipulate sand, and has accidentally killed a few villagers, but the Kazekage has been meaning to help him control it, but never has time. And the village council ordered someone to, and I volunteered. He needs to die." Yashamura hacked up some more blood, "Why does it matter to you?"

"Marking information for the future." 47 answered easily as he pulled out one of his ICA Silverballers and fired, the silenced gunshot alerting no one. 47 quickly strolled over and dragged Yashamura's body into his bathroom, before exiting the office the way he came. Making his way toward the two boys, he began to think and formulate multiple escape routes just in case. "Naruto, it's time to leave." 47 spoke as he approached the two. Feigning ignorance he rose an eyebrow, "And who might this be?"

"This is Gaara! He's my new friend, 47! And he's treated like I was back in the Hidden Leaf." Naruto spoke quietly so that no one could hear them, minus 47 and Gaara. Hearing this, Gaara's eyes widened; Naruto was treated like him back where he came from? "Is it possible that he could join us?" Naruto questioned.

47 allowed a rare smile to cross his features as he closed his eyes momentarily, "That's exactly what I was going to suggest. Gaara, I'm not going to lie to you: You were to be assassinated tonight by your Uncle. I, however, stopped him and am offering you the chance to leave this village and come travel with us. Whenever Naruto completes his training, you can either return here, or you can go with him to the Hidden Leaf. It'll be your choice, but you're going to have to choose quickly because Naruto and I have to leave here."

Gaara looked at the bald man, before looking at Naruto. His Uncle...his Uncle was going to try to kill him later that night? But why? Why would he try to do that? Gaara thought that Yashamura loved him! The sand around his feet swirled up and formed a vortex around his body before dropping a moment after. "Gaara?" Naruto questioned.

"I'll do it. I have no love for this village anymore." Gaara said with a sudden coldness in his voice, before he looked at 47 and Naruto, "Will you two help me learn to control my sand abilities?"

"Yes, Gaara, we will. Now, quickly, we must depart." 47 instructed, already beginning to walk away, hearing the duo quickly follow. His face hidden from the two children, the right corner of his mouth twitched upward slightly before falling back into the same frown he always wore. Once they were out of the village, 47 quickly lying to the guards that the Kazekage had allowed Gaara to come with him, the assassin pulled out his cellphone and texted Diana, ' _Mission Complete.'_

Diana texted back immediately with the reply: _'The money is in your account. Good work, 47.'_

He stowed away his phone as the trio traveled away from the Hidden Sand Village and onward to wherever their feet took them.

* * *

Well, that was it for this chapter of 47's Protege. Hope you all enjoyed! :D

-V


	3. Gato

Last time on _**47's Protege**_ :

 _"I'll do it. I have no love for this village anymore." Gaara said with a sudden coldness in his voice, before he looked at 47 and Naruto, "Will you two help me learn to control my sand abilities?"_

 _"Yes, Gaara, we will. Now, quickly, we must depart." 47 instructed, already beginning to walk away, hearing the duo quickly follow. His face hidden from the two children, the right corner of his mouth twitched upward slightly before falling back into the same frown he always wore. Once they were out of the village, 47 quickly lying to the guards that the Kazekage had allowed Gaara to come with him, the assassin pulled out his cellphone and texted Diana, 'Mission Complete.'_

 _Diana texted back immediately with the reply: 'The money is in your account. Good work, 47.'_

 _He stowed away his phone as the trio traveled away from the Hidden Sand Village and onward to wherever their feet took them._

 _Thoughts_ will be italicized

 **Demon thought and speak** will be bold.

I own nothing of Naruto, nor of HITMAN.

-V

* * *

Five years had passed since 47 had taken Naruto and Gaara from their respective villages. They were well versed in hand-to-hand combat, disguise, stealth, and lethal weapons. They were two of the Agency's finest Agents, aside from 47 himself. The master assassin was quite proud to have trained them, though he would never admit it. Currently, he watched as the two slept silently, although both were ready to awaken at a moment's notice.

Naruto hadn't changed much, except for him filling out with more lean muscle, allowing him to strike fast and hard, akin to a cobra. The boy hadn't managed to call upon the Kyuubi's power yet, which 47 found odd. Gaara could call upon the Shukaku's power at will, so why wasn't Naruto able to do the same? He frowned before feeling his phone vibrate within his pocket. Knowing that Diana had just sent him a mission, he wordlessly opened his laptop, logged in and watched as the screen lit up. He began to read the mission parameters, the target, and where he was. He nodded to himself and closed the laptop, putting it away before getting up and heading to the bathroom.

After washing his hands and exiting, his gaze fell upon Naruto and Gaara, the blond just lacing up his boots, while the redhead was cleaning his blade. Naruto and Gaara exchanged a look before the two pulled out their handguns, a M1911 and a Glock 20, respectively. Both disassembled and reassembled their firearms within five minutes, the training that 47 drilled into their heads taking place. Naruto finished and ensured that there was a bullet in the chamber, before checking the magazine. "7 bullets locked and loaded. Gaara?"

"15. Extra magazines?" The redhead replied before questioning his teammate and brother.

"I have five within my inner vest pockets, four within my back pockets, and at least four to five more within my shuriken holster."

"I have the same amount. What else are we forgetting?" Gaara rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"Storage scrolls?" Naruto inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"No, I have them ready and on hand. Headsets?"

"Got 'em right here." Naruto replied, tossing one ear piece to his brother, while stowing the other into one of his many front vest pockets.

"Are you two almost done?" 47 stared at them calmly, watching as the two nodded and stood at attention. Gaara finished tightening his shin guards, while Naruto zipped up his vest before 47 nodded, "Let's go. We've got to travel about a day away in about four hours. The situation is urgent." With that, the assassin turned and exited the hotel room, the two following obediently and without a word.

As soon as they left the small town, they jumped up to the surrounding trees and booked it to the small village in the land of waves.

True to his word, it took the trio about four hours to travel to their destination, a mansion on the waterfront surrounding the village.

"Naruto, Gaara, I'm leaving this up to you. This will determine if you're ready for your own line of work. Do not fail me, boys." 47 instructed, before he jumped off the tree branch, heading toward the village.

"Well, you heard the man." Naruto muttered as he surveyed the situation. "Are we going to stick together or...?" He turned his head to see Gaara vanishing, his entire body moving as a cloud of sand. "Okay, I guess not." He sighed somewhat and shook his head, "Gaara was more prone to stealth anyway, in terms of getting inside a location. I on the other hand..." He trailed off before dropping down to the ground, strolling toward the front gates. Seeing at least two guards on the ground, and several more surrounding the balcony of the mansion, Naruto whistled to himself before a guard stepped in front of him.

"Halt. What business do you have here?"

"Oh, you know. I was just in the neighborhood and thought I would stop by and give Gato a visit." Naruto answered honestly.

"And what business do you have with Gato?" The guard demanded.

"A little bit of this, and a little bit of that. Personally, it's just a meeting that shouldn't take too long." Naruto replied before stepping forward into the guard's defense, snapping his neck. Using the now deceased guard as a meat shield, Naruto was safe from any of the thrown weapons that were hurled his way before he vaulted over and slammed his foot into the cheek of the other ground guard, watching as he slammed into the wall. The blonde assassin quickly pulled out the kunai that was hidden away up his sleeve before throwing it, watching with satisfaction as it landed in the guards left eye.

Rolling to cover, Naruto pulled out several more kunai, throwing them with the accuracy 47 drilled into his head over the years. Not one to waste any resources, Naruto picked up the kunai embedded in the guards head, before pocketing it and continuing on his way. He ran forward, dodging most weapons, not even showing a reaction as a kunai grazed his cheek before he quickly preformed a T shape handsign with his fingers. Several puffs of smoke filled the area, as clones of himself popped into existence. "Two of you, take care of these fools. The other two are to go searching for Gato, and dispel when you got his location." The clones did as instructed, while Naruto ran into the house, before pressing against the headset. "Gaara," he spoke, looking around the foyer only to see limbs and blood caking the wall, "you didn't happen to come through the foyer room, did you?"

"Maybe I did, Naruto." His brother replied stoically, before appearing next to him in a swirl of sand, "Did you happen to find Gato?"

"Got some clones working on it. Are there any other guards?" Naruto rose an eyebrow.

"I'd be surprised if there were. You know I don't like to leave anyone behind." Gaara answered, crossing his arms.

"But of course." Naruto deadpanned, only to grow serious, "One of my clones dispelled, Gato is upstairs in his office. Cliche as hell, but why don't we go say hello?" With that, the two leaped up toward Gato's office, using the walls to bounce off of. Landing, Naruto shuddered a second, "The other clone was dispelled, but it was due to an unknown. Whatever dispelled said clone, attacked it from behind. Be on your guard."

"I always am." Gaara scoffed, the two walking forward to Gato's office, only for Gaara's sand to protect him while Naruto deflected the thrown weapons with his kunai. "Senbon needles?" Gaara questioned, scowling after a moment.

"It seems that way." Naruto nodded before scanning the room only to roll backwards as someone came barreling out from underneath. Drawing his gun, Naruto pressed the barrel upon the forehead of the assailant, while having senbon needles pressed against his throat. "Gaara, wait." He instructed, seeing Gaara's sand swirl around them. "So, you're protecting Gato?" He questioned. The ninja was dressed in fake Hunter-Ninja garb, but the mask was missing, black hair framing their face, and brown eyes glaring at him intently.

"Not really protecting him, no. But more or less protecting my sensei. Gato is just a paycheck." The ninja replied.

"You're right, Gato _is_ just a paycheck. We were hired to take him out. You're merely hired by him for what purpose?" Naruto was curious.

"To take out a bridge builder in the village. If he completes the bridge, then trade will flourish within the town, and Gato doesn't want any of his business to be interrupted." Came the answer.

"Hm. Well, how about we strike a deal?" Naruto withdrew his gun, holstering it.

"I'm listening."

"How about you let us take Gato out, and whatever money he has here, you keep? Besides, we don't want to have to kill unnecessarily unless provoked." Gaara chimed in.

The ninja seemed to mull it over for a few minutes before withdrawing the senbon, "Thank you...erm, I didn't catch your name." Naruto scratched his cheek somewhat, a nervous habit of his.

"My name is Haku, and my sensei's name is Zabuza. I have to go retrieve him from the forest, and by the time I get back, I hope you two are gone." Haku then vanished, while Naruto shrugged and pulled out his combat knife.

"You heard the lady...or was it a man? Ah well, you heard Haku. Let's do this." Gaara nodded and used his sand to rip the door from its hinges, while Naruto rushed forward. Gaara used his sand to easily block the weapons that were thrown at his brother, before using it to dispatch of Gato's guards.

"Wh-what do you want?!" Gato squeaked out, fear evident in his eyes.

"Oh, nothing from you. I'm here to conclude a bit of good business." Naruto answered honestly, before plunging his knife into Gato's throat. Watching as the pig of a man bled out, he quickly searched the body for anything of value. Finding nothing but a key to a safe, he assumed, Naruto left it on the desk for Haku to find. He quickly sealed Gato's head in a scroll for the bounty, before turning to his brother. "Let's go, Gaara. Our business is done." The two quickly left, heading toward the small village.

Arriving after a short walk, they split up to see whom would find 47 first. However, after searching for a good thirty minutes, Naruto was coming up with nothing. "Gaara, you find him yet?"

"Negative. Even with his disguises, we can still tell where he is by his chakra, but I can't even sense that." Came the reply over the headset. Naruto frowned somewhat before schooling his emotions. 47 was his own man, and he could travel anywhere he wanted to. However, it was unlike him to not leave a signal of some sort, a clue or something. He felt a tug on his pantleg and Naruto looked down to see the begging eyes of a child. He merely pulled out an apple from his bag and handed it to the child, only for the child to start walking away, motioning him to follow. Against his better judgement, Naruto followed, his hand ready to withdraw his knife at a moment's notice.

He was led to a small house where the boy simply pointed onto the small dinner table. Naruto followed the finger's direction, only for his breath to catch a bit. On the table lay 47's cellphone, a few of his signature coins, and a note. He walked over to the table and grabbed the coins before pocketing them, along with the cellphone, sliding it into his inner vest pocket. Unfolding the small note, it merely read:

 _You and Gaara have passed the final test. You both have made me proud. If you walk to the the North, up on the hill will be a house belonging to a bridge builder named Tazuna. Tazuna is housing some Shinobi from the Hidden Leaf Village. Go to them, and see if you can't return to your old village. I'll be in touch._

Naruto wordlessly crumbled up the note and quickly burned it with a small fire jutsu before stamping out the ashes. Exiting and heading toward the center of the village, 47 watched from the scope of his sniper rifle, before disassembling it and going on his way. Hopefully he gave Gaara and Naruto the skills to survive. Hopefully the two wouldn't cross his path for quite some time now.

Gaara met him in the center, silent as he observed his brother. Not one to beat around the bush, the redhead spoke, "I assume you received a note about going to the Village Hidden in the Leaf?"

Naruto nodded, "Did you receive a similar one about the Sand?"

Gaara shook his head at this, "Even if 47 advised me to go back to the Sand, I'm following you. Someone has to keep an eye on you, after all." There was an underlying message; _I don't want to be alone._ Naruto merely started to walk toward the house that 47 mentioned, his brother following right beside him. The two would watch each other's backs for as long as they could, until breath no longer filled their lungs. They were given the green light to do assassinations on their own, and that meant that they wouldn't have 47 to watch over them in case things went South. It was up to them now.

* * *

I do apologize for not updating in so long, everyone! Finals rapidly approached and I had to study, and I just got done with them all, and now it's time for relaxation and a bunch of fanfiction reading/ writing! :D Hope you all have enjoyed this somewhat short chapter! R&R

-V


	4. Return to the Leaf

Last time on _**47's Protege**_ :

 _Gaara shook his head at this, "Even if 47 advised me to go back to the Sand, I'm following you. Someone has to keep an eye on you, after all." There was an underlying message; I don't want to be alone. Naruto merely started to walk toward the house that 47 mentioned, his brother following right beside him. The two would watch each other's backs for as long as they could, until breath no longer filled their lungs. They were given the green light to do assassinations on their own, and that meant that they wouldn't have 47 to watch over them in case things went South. It was up to them now._

 _Thoughts_ will be italicized

 **Demon thought and speak** will be bold.

I own nothing of Naruto, nor of HITMAN.

-V

* * *

A knock on the door of Tazuna's house caused every occupant to raise their head from their meal, directly at the door. Kakashi Hatake, famed 'Copy Cat Kakashi', son of the Legendary White Fang, shinobi that knew over 1,000 jutsu stared at the door with a wary eye. He was wounded from his battle with Zabuza, and had just recently woken up. His lone eye swiveled toward Sasuke Uchiha, the boy merely nodding.

Sasuke got up and walked silently to the door, while everyone held their breath in a tense manner. Kakashi knew that he should try to get Tazuna out the back door, but he didn't know what to expect on the other side of the front door that Sasuke was creeping toward. The boy in question opened the door to reveal two boys in shinobi gear, Sasuke narrowing his eyes and clenching the kunai tighter.

"Easy there, Leaf-san. We're not after the bridge builder." Naruto stated easily as he stared him impassively.

"Then what do you want?" Sasuke questioned, sliding into a small defensive stance.

"To talk." Gaara's monotone voice came from behind, the boy having just reformed. Sasuke's eyes widened, while his teammates, Sakura Haruno paled, and Shogo merely stood up and went beside Tazuna.

"And what do you, pray tell, want to talk about?" Kakashi questioned curiously. If they had meant to harm any of them, they would have done so already. "Sasuke, it's okay. We should hear them out, at least. Let them inside." Tazuna was staring at him like he were crazy, and Kakashi could be for all he knew. The man had just woken up from a fever-induced sleep after the battle with Zabuza, for Kami's sake!

"To come back to the Leaf, under my sensei's orders." Naruto answered, as he walked past Sasuke, his posture straight, yet his eyes gave away how bored he was with everyone in the room. As if they couldn't give him a challenge. Kakashi's eye widened, Naruto's lip twitching upward slightly. "I do believe that he said I would return someday, after all."

"Naruto? Is that you?" Kakashi questioned, while Gaara rose a non-existent eyebrow. How did this man know his brother? Perhaps they knew each other before Naruto left the leave, the redhead reasoned.

"Indeed it is, Inu." Naruto smirked this time, watching as Kakashi paled somewhat. "You think I'd forget one of the men who made me into what I am today?"

"And..what exactly are you?" Sakura spoke up, her eyes staring at the boy. At a first glance, she seemed fine, but Naruto observed the slight tremor in her left hand, itching to grab a kunai from her holster attached to her thigh. She was nervous, and for good reason. An unknown man was in her client's house, with a claim that he wanted to go to the Leaf.

"I'm a professional clean-up guy." Naruto said easily, getting confused looks from everyone but Kakashi, who caught the meaning. "I actually came to report that Gato is no longer going to be a problem, neither are Zabuza or his accomplice."

"What are you saying? No one can stop Gato!" Came the cry of a little boy.

"Inari, hush." Tazuna growled out, before looking at his daughter, Tsunami who nodded somewhat. If this man claimed that Gato was dead, they'd give him the benefit of the doubt.

"Naruto, what do you mean Gato won't be a problem anymore?" Kakashi inquired curiously. He wasn't worried about Gato in the first place, he was mainly worried about Zabuza and his accomplice.

Naruto rolled his eyes before quickly unsealing the scroll and promptly threw Gato's head on the table. Inari and Sakura paled and passed out, while Shogo cursed silently. Tazuna spit out the sake he was drinking, while Tsunami quickly scooted back in fear. Sasuke looked away, while Kakashi merely narrowed his eye. Naruto wordlessly sealed the head back up and shrugged, "That's what I mean, Kakashi. Now, as for Zabuza and his accomplice, Haku, they won't be a problem. We left them whatever money they could find at Gato's base. Their contract gone, they won't be after Tazuna. So, when are you all going to go back to the Hidden Leaf?"

Kakashi sighed and rubbed his chin in thought, "Well, I've got to recuperate from my injuries, which should take...oh, I don't know, a week?"

Naruto and Gaara exchanged glances before Gaara crossed his arms, "Do you need help with the bridge, Tazuna-san?"

The elderly bridge builder, in a similar fashion to Kakashi, rubbed his goatee while 'hurumphing' "Yes, I suppose I can use the help. When can you start?"

"We'll start tonight. Kakashi, rest up and be ready to move by at least Thursday." Naruto stated while the two turned and exited.

"But...that's only four days from now. No one will be able to get that done." Shogo remarked quietly, rubbing his temples. Of course with all the excitement going on, there would be a headache forming for him.

"Let's give the benefit of the doubt, and besides, with Gato, Zabuza and Haku out of the picture, this means that we can all help out on the bridge."

The following morning, Kakashi limped out on crutches, his students following obediently. He was going to show them the art of tree climbing, a simple chakra control exercise. If, they could manage it, whenever they got back to the village, he would show them water walking. Normally he would slack off and just read his book, but he was going to try to mold them into something akin to the previous Team 7, whenever Obito, Rin and himself were led under Minato Namikaze, the deceased Fourth Hokage. "Kakashi-Sensei, what are we doing?" Sakura spoke up, eyeing her sensei.

He calmly explained the exercise and performed it, walking up the tree before standing upside down on a nearby branch. "Well, that's basically all you need to do for the exercise. As I said, if you use too much chakra, you'll push off the tree. Too little, and you'll fall. You gotta find that perfect balance." With that, he climbed down and eye smiled at them, "Alright, have fun, kids. I'm going to go find our two new friends." Their sensei limped away, heading toward the bridge.

Sasuke and Shogo merely looked at each other before rushing at the tree. Sasuke made it a little way up before jumping off due to being pushed off the tree, while Shogo slid down, landing on his head. They both looked at Sakura, the rosette merely walking up the tree slowly, not wavering nor sliding off. She made it to the top branch, giving a small smile down toward her teammates, a victorious look in her eyes.

"So...how the hell did you do that?" Shogo deadpanned, eyebrow raised.

"Well, it's like Kakashi-Sensei said, Shogo. You have to find the right balance of chakra in your feet before you attempt to climb the tree." She shrugged and sighed somewhat, "Due to the nature of my chakra reserves, they're somewhat small which means I won't have so much difficulty with this exercise, as you can see." She hummed in thought before taking a seat on the branch she was on and threw two kunai toward her teammates. "Let's see how high you can get, shall we?"

XxXx

Kakashi, meanwhile had finally made it to the bridge, where clones upon clones of both Gaara and Naruto were helping with the bridge, moving steel beams and putting them into place upon Tazuna's order. The original Gaara was manipulating his sand, while Naruto was relaxing against a barrel. "Oh hey there, Kakashi."

"Naruto, Gaara." Kakashi spoke and inclined his head slightly, "How goes the progress?"

"Oh, we should be done a little bit after dinner on Wednesday night." Naruto said nonchalantly, while Kakashi 'hm'ed in thought. The jounin turned to observe Naruto, seeing how much he had changed in the past 10 years. He reminisced on old times, when the two would go out for ramen or play 'ninja'.

"Well that's good. Even with Gato out of the picture, are you not worried about some of his grunts coming to get revenge?" The one-eyed jounin questioned. He knew Naruto and Gaara were hired killers, and apparently very professional, considering on how clean the edges of Gato's head was whenever it was severed from his body.

"Not at all, Kakashi-san." Gaara spoke up, his teal eyes boring into Kakashi before looking away at the surroundings. "If there were to be any of Gato's lackey's left alive, we would know about it. Naruto has clones throughout the city."

Kakashi rose an eyebrow at this, "If you do indeed have clones within the city Naruto, how are they staying out of view?"

"Henge." Came Naruto's simple reply. "You of all people should know that if the henge is strong enough, they can fool low level to thugs of Gato's caliber."

"Yes, but you have to remember that Gato also hired _ninja_ like Zabuza and Haku." Kakashi reminded him.

"You are correct, yes, but with Zabuza and Gato out of the picture, we don't have to worry about any ninja." Gaara cut in, before crossing his arms as he closed his eyes.

Kakashi remained silent as he watched the clones and Tazuna's friends continue to work on the bridge.

XxXx

Team 7, with Naruto and Gaara in tow set out toward Konoha once more, and without having to travel at Tazuna's pace could travel by treetop. The trip took them over the course of five hours, and soon, Konoha was within sight. Naruto was, dare he say, nervous about returning to the village. After all, the last time he was here was whenever he was a kid and being beaten for something he had no control over. Gaara seemed to sense his brother's internal plight, for he offered him a rare smile and the group of five continued on their way.

"Team 7 returning from their mission to the small village of Wave Country." Kakashi spoke to the two Chunin on guard duty.

"And the extra baggage?" one of the guards spoke, sneering slightly only for Naruto to silence him with a stony glare.

"These two are potential allies, and they requested an escort." Kakashi explained.

"Alright then, may I see your passports?" The other guard asked in a somewhat polite manner, the blonde and redhead complying. Of course, they were fake ideas, the names marked as 'Takeda Smith' and 'Hoshi Smith' for Naruto and Gaara respectively. They took after 47's alias of 'John Smith', their cover story being that they were two traveling brothers in search of their father.

After being waved through, they made their way to the Hokage's office, the two assassins receiving questioning looks from the villagers and shinobi alike. Naruto let out a yawn, reaching up to cover his mouth somewhat before he tapped his chin. ' _ANBU are watching, brother.'_

Gaara made no sign of acknowledgement to Naruto except for a faint twitch of the left side of his mouth. They continued toward the Hokage's tower in silence, while some of the villagers began to whisper about Naruto, muttering and pointing. It seemed that a few remembered the 'demon brat' that mysteriously up and left the village all those years ago.

Arriving at the Hokage's office, Team 7 along with Naruto and Gaara were allowed in. "Ah, Kakashi, welcome back to the village. How was your first C-rank mission?" The village leader questioned with a small smile, but his eyes were burning into Gaara and Naruto, suspicion and surprise in his eyes.

Kakashi debriefed the Hokage on their mission, about how it was a C rank that quickly turned into at least an A rank, and then he turned toward Naruto and Gaara, "And then these two showed up on Tazuna's doorstep."

Naruto and Gaara then stepped forward, "Hokage-Sama." The two bowed and spoke in unison, before straightening.

"Naruto Uzumaki and Gaara Sabaku. What do I owe the pleasure of this visit?" The Hokage spoke, eyeing Naruto with happiness that seemed to light up his eyes. Naruto merely smiled somewhat before his lips straightened into a thin line.

"47 requested that we come back to the village. As for the reasoning, we're not exactly sure why." Naruto explained, his eyes on the man he viewed as a grandfather.

"Ah, that could be due to the fact that he promised your safe return whenever he was done training you. It looks like he's good at keeping his word, isn't he?" The Hokage smiled and chuckled softly.

"Yes, he is. However, I doubt he wanted us to become ninja for the Hidden Leaf." Gaara spoke in his monotone, crossing his arms.

"Very astute, Gaara." The Hokage turned serious as he looked at Team 7, "You all have a week off to rest and recover from this mission. Kakashi, you may stay or leave, it is your choice. You're dismissed."

Sasuke looked like he wanted to object, only for Shogo to shake his head in objection. Begrudgingly, the 'last' Uchiha left along with his team.

As soon as genin were out of the office, the Hokage made a movement with his hands, the ANBU in the room leaving with a silent sunshin. Performing a quick set of handseals, the Hokage cast a silencing jutsu around the room. He leaned forward, his hat hiding his eyes as he clasped his hands together. "Tell me Naruto Uzumaki and Garra Sabaku...what do you know of Orochimaru of the Sannin?"

* * *

I'm sorry about the month long wait, but I didn't exactly know how to flesh out the story and move it forward. However, I'll be excited to see what you think of this chapter, and what you think will happen from here.

-V


	5. Trouble at the Akamichi BBQ

Last time on _**47's Protege**_ :

 _As soon as genin were out of the office, the Hokage made a movement with his hands, the ANBU in the room leaving with a silent sunshin. Performing a quick set of handseals, the Hokage cast a silencing jutsu around the room. He leaned forward, his hat hiding his eyes as he clasped his hands together. "Tell me Naruto Uzumaki and Garra Sabaku...what do you know of Orochimaru of the Sannin?"_

 _Thoughts_ will be italicized

 **Demon thought and speak** will be bold.

I own nothing of Naruto, nor of HITMAN.

-V

* * *

"What do we know about your old student, one of the legendary Sannin?" Gaara questioned, narrowing his eyes. "Other than the fact that he is power-hungry, presumably insane, lusting after immortality and all jutsu, not much. We do know that 47 told us to never engage in combat unless we were absolutely sure that we could defeat him, or if we had Tsunade or Jiraiya with us. Why do you ask, Lord Hokage?"

"Jiraiya cannot be for certain, but there are whispers of an invasion set to happen between the Sand and another unknown village during the Chunin Exams that will be held in the Leaf Village this year. Jiraiya believes that Orochimaru may be behind it, and we're setting up precautionary measures in case this invasion does come to bear fruition. These include calling Jiraiya back from his 'research', ensuring every active Chunin and Jounin not assigned to a team is well equipped and ready...and you two." The Third explained.

"Us? What do we have to do with any of this? We're not exactly Leaf ninja." Naruto rose an eyebrow before blinking, "And the Sand Village? I thought they were our allies?"

"Treaties and negotiations can only get you so far, Naruto." The Third answered with a small smile, before growing serious once more, "And you two are not Leaf ninja, that is correct. However, given your...particular set of skills, you're going to be the Leaf's unofficial ace in the hole. We've already contacted your Agency, and ensured that payment will be delivered to your accounts once the threat has passed. And if you'd like to stay however, then we would gladly welcome you with open arms. HThe Chunin Exams are set to begin in two months, which means two months to get acquainted to the village, or in Naruto's case, reacquainted. You may be called upon by me or Kakashi here to help out with training. Are we understood?"

Naruto and Gaara exchanged a brief glance, and then in unison, "Yes, Lord Hokage."

"That is all. You three are dismissed...And Naruto? It's good to have you back." The Third said, a wide smile adorning his features.

Naruto returned the smile in kind before the three exited the Hokage's office. The village leader chewed on his pipe before getting back to paperwork, the thoughts of the rumored invasion on his mind. However, with Naruto and Gaara, they may have more of a chance at surviving.

Meanwhile, Kakashi was showing Naruto and Gaara around the Leaf village, however to Naruto, not much had changed in the time since he had left. He interrupted Kakashi for a moment, "Is the Leaf's _Green Lotus_ hotel still near the Akamichi BBQ place?"

"Yes, Naruto, it is. Perfect for two traveling business men such as yourselves." Kakashi replied easily, crinkling his eye up with a smile. "And speaking of it being near the Akamichi BBQ, would you all like to go get some food?"

"Perhaps another time, Kakashi. For now, we'll be going our separate ways. If you need us, merely call and we'll answer." Naruto waved slightly and the two walked off, before Kakashi sighed somewhat and shunshined away for a bite to eat.

The following morning, Naruto and Gaara were greeted by Kakashi bearing a basket of fruits on their window sill. Kakashi was somewhat weary whenever the two pointed their strange metallic weapons at him before he held up a hand, "Whoa guys, whoa. I just come bearing food...and no ill harm."

"Force of habit." Gaara droned out, the two still having their aim on him.

"Tell me, Kakashi. What did we eat before I departed from the village with 47?" Naruto narrowed his eyes, while Kakashi narrowed his eye in return.

"We ate at Ichiraku's ramen stand. Your favorite place." The jounin replied easily, breathing a sigh of relief as the two holstered their guns.

"Like Gaara said, a force of habit. Sorry, we had to ensure you were really you." Naruto apologized.

Kakashi set down the basket, waving his hand, "Mah, don't worry about it. I've been in your shoes plenty of times. Although, I must admit I'm curious, what are those weapons?"

"Sorry Kakashi, trade secrets." Naruto answered as he grabbed one of the oranges, beginning to peel it. Taking a bite out of it, he chewed for a second then swallowed, before taking another bite, "So what'd you need Mamashi?"

"What he means," Gaara sighed, "Is do you need something, or were you just dropping the fruit off?"

"Well, the Hokage wants you and Gaara to go out and about the village. It would be suspicious if two new comers just kept to themselves and never interacted with the villagers or Konoha's shinobi forces." Kakashi rubbed his chin, "Perhaps we can go by the Akamichi BBQ and see who's there?"

"You and your BBQ, Kakashi." Naruto rolled his eyes before beginning to dress. Rather than the outfit he wore during his first meeting with Kakashi at Wave, he opted for black dress slacks, a pair of dress shoes, a gray button up, and a burgundy vest. Rolling up his sleeves, he grabbed his gun holster and put it on, the guns resting comfortably against his chest. To complete the look, he put on his suit jacket and shrugged, "If you want BBQ, let's go."

Gaara rolled his eyes somewhat, Kakashi noting that he was wearing what he wore in Wave, "Not going to change, Gaara?" Kakashi questioned with a chuckle.

"Unlike my brother, I don't need to change simply because we're in a village. There could be dangers lurking about, even in a village as respected as the Leaf." Gaara toned out, crossing his arms.

"Oh, Gaara, you act like I don't have any weapons!" Naruto whined somewhat before all three left via the window.

"For all I know, those could be the prank weapons you got at the store back in that one trading town." Came the reply.

"Those were well worth the money, especially with the modifications I put on them!" Naruto reasoned, before his brother 'hmphed', causing Kakashi to chuckle once more, the three darting across the rooftops.

Landing, Kakashi lead the way to the back of the restaurant, where several groups of other ninja were already gathered. Turning, the cyclops nodded to two other jounin before introducing them, "Naruto, Gaara, these are some of my comrades, Asuma Sarutobi and Kurenai Yuhi. And the cute little genin around them are their teams."

Asuma stared at Naruto and Gaara for a minute, scrutinizing them, before he chewed on his cigarette and moved it to the side of his mouth, "Nice to meet you two. The three on the left of me are my team, affectionately referred to as Team 10. We have Shikamaru Nara," a boy with a lazy expression on his face and pineapple shaped hair raised an eyebrow at them, before waving and going back to his meal, "The other boy that is consuming the meal like it's his last is Choji Akamichi." The rather plump boy with swirls on his cheeks munched on his food happily and waved in greeting. Asuma turned slightly and introduced his last student, "And the blonde over there is Ino Yamanaka. Together, the three form this generation of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, like their fathers before them." Ino narrowed her eyes at the two, before offering a curt nod.

Naruto and Gaara nodded in greeting, while Kurenai introduced her team, "A pleasure. The boy and his dog are Kiba and Akamaru, respectively." Aforementioned boy and dog waved/ barked in greeting, before resuming their meal. "The boy is Shino Aburame, although he's a bit quiet." The boy with sunglasses merely pushed them up onto his face and barely inclined his head. "And the girl beside me is.."

"Hinata Hyuuga. Daughter to Hiashi Hyuuga, sister to Hanabi Hyuuga." Naruto finished, ignoring the look of shock he received from Hinata, also ignoring the wary and narrowed eyes of all three jounin in the restaurant. "We've done our homework." He explained before he and Gaara sat down beside Kakashi, the redhead beginning to grill his food, while Naruto merely observed all of the genin.

"Speaking of genin, Kakashi. Where are yours?" Asuma questioned, trying to break the awkwardness that filled the room.

"Oh, who knows. Probably up to no good." Kakashi said nonchalantly, his eye crinkling up into his 'smile'. "I didn't bother to invite them, because I know that they'd either decline, or come find us later."

"You're assumption would be correct, Kakashi-San." Shino spoke up, his voice a mere murmur that floated through the air toward the jounin. "Here comes your team now."

Naruto turned his head slightly, ears catching the sound of approaching footsteps. However, instead of just three pairs, there was a fourth. Gaara took a bite of his food, however his hand twitched subtly, causing Naruto to nod. Kakashi, Asuma and Kurenai were immediately on guard, knowing the telltale signs of a mental conversation going on, and that something was up.

"Ah, Kakashi-Sensei, here you are. I have a man that's looking for Naruto and Gaara. And what do you know, here they are!" Sasuke spoke with a cool voice, onyx eyes staring at his sensei with boredom.

"Oh? And what does the man want with our two guests?" Kakashi questioned, his eye narrowed slightly. He took in the appearance of the man and tensed somewhat. A black dress suit, white shirt, blood red tie and wearing gloves. The correct attire of Agent 47, however this man was black.

"Probably to complete a bit of good business." Naruto answered honestly before he shunshined behind the man, aiming a strike toward his back. The man turned and blocked effortlessly, countering with a quick right cross. Naruto accepted it and circled out of the man's center line, throwing his hands up into the basic Muay Thai combat stance. Gaara meanwhile had used his sand to get Team 7 out of the way, all jounin on guard and kunai drawn, while their genin were struggling to jump into action.

"Naruto, what's going on?" Kakashi questioned, his body in front of Team 7, guarding them.

"Oh, you know. One of the Agents from the Agency attempting to collect a contract on me. Or Gaara." Naruto replied while blocking a body kick from the Agent, countering with his own kick, aiming for the man's inner left leg. The man accepted the kick and stepped into Naruto's center line, delivering a few quick body shots, only to circle out as Gaara's sand rushed to attack him.

"Probably both, to be honest. Only because Naruto doesn't know how to be as inconspicuous as he believes himself to be." Gaara sighed in exasperation, eyes focused on the Agent.

"Oh, I know. Only when the situation called for it. However, why would the Agency declare a hit on us? We're some of the best Agents they have!" Naruto flew a flying knee toward the man, connecting and sending him flying through the air before the Agent crashed onto a table before he rolled to his feet, throwing a knife. Naruto tilted his head and ignored the small knick it gave him on his neck before pulling out his throwing knife and gripping it tightly.

"Child, do you really think you can defeat me with a knife like that?" The Agent questioned with a cold voice, pulling out another knife.

"Let's see who the better Agent is, shall we?" Naruto answered his question with another question before the two rushed each other.

* * *

Well, I'll leave it here on this small type of cliffhanger. One Agent has come for Naruto and Gaara, which means that soon more and more will appear. And with the threat of invasion looming on the upcoming Chunin Exams, it seems that Naruto and everyone will have to be on guard, whether it be from Orochimaru, or from the Agency!

The only reason it's taken me so long to update is due to getting prepared for College, which is now back in full swing. So that means that updates will come in scarcity. I apologize, guys. R&R

-V


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